Windmill.



No. 63|-,982. Patented Aug. 29, I899.

J. N. BRUCE.

WINDMILL.

(Application filed Apr. 18, 18984) 3 SheetsSheet (No Model.)

Invamur Wizn E5555 J. N. BRUCE.

Patented Aug. 29, I899.

W l N D M l L L.

(Application filed Apr. 18, 1898.1

3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

(No Model.)

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. Patented Aug. 29, I899. J. u. sauna.

No. 63l,982.

WI N D M l L L.

(Application filed Apr. 18, 1898.)

(No Model.)

3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

Wizn E5555 m: "ohms wEYzRs co. PHOTQ-UTHOWASHINGTON. uc

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE...

JAMES N. BRUCE, OF LONDON, CANADA.

WINDMILL..

SPEGIFIGATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 631,982, dated August29, 1899.

Application filed April 18, 1898. Serial No. 678,096. (No model.)

by the action of the wind on a series of sails.

The object of this invention is to provide a simple, strong, and durabledevice for this purpose, one which will be inexpensive to manufactureand efficient in practical use;

and it consists of a shaft and means securedv to the tower-post by whichsaid shaft is sup-. ported and in which it revolves perfectly free,

of a hub secured to said shaft, of horizontal arms radiating from saidhub, of weights secured to the outer ends of said horizontal arms and offrames secured near the outer end of each of the horizontal arms inwhich the sails are pivoted 0E their center, of a standard socketed inor otherwise secured to and extending upward above the hub and a leverpivoted on said standard, to one end of which lever a strand of wire orother suitable material is secured, which extends to the ground withinconvenient reach, and to the other end of said lever a strand is securedwhich is connected to other strands, which operate sail-locks to engagethem with or disengage them from the sails, so that the mill may beadjusted in or out of operation, as desired; and it also consists of theimproved construction and combination of parts of the same, as will behereinafter first fully set forth and described and then pointed out in.the claims.

Reference is had to the accompanying drawings, wherein Figure 1 is aperspective view of a windmill embodying my invention. In this view anumber of the stay or brace wires are partially cut away in order tomore clearly illustrate the prominent parts of my invention. Fig. 2 isan enlarged detail perspective view of one of thehorizontal arms andconnections which carry the sails. In this view the sails are shownexposed to the full force of the wind. Fig. 3 is another enlarged detailperspective view of same, showing the sails locked with their edges tothe wind. Fig. 4. is a detail side elevation of one of the sails,showing a wire frame. In this view the edge of the can vas, which isfolded over on the wire frame, is'removed in order to more clearlyillustrate the construction of said frame. Fig. 5 is an enlarged detailperspective view of a portion of a sail, illustrating a truss andpivotal brace which is advantageously used in connection with largesails.

A designates a tower-post, which may be rigidly held in an uprightposition by being sunk in the ground or by means of stay, cable, orbrace wires, or both, or in any manner or by any means found mostsuitable or convenient.

In the annexed drawings a single towerpost A is shown; but two posts maybe used having rungs bridging the space between them, which may be usedas a convenient means of ascending and descending the towerpost, or, ifpreferred, the ordinary or any other form of tower may be used.

B designates a vertical shaft, which may be formed solid or hollow, asfound most suitable or convenient, which shaft extends through openingsin one or more brackets A, secured to the tower-post A, by whichbrackets A said shaft B is held in place, supported by, and revolvesperfectly free, and the lower end of said shaft B is supported on abearing A secured to the tower-post or on the ground, as found mostsuitable or convenient.

C designates an axle which is held in place, supported by, and whichrevolves perfectly free in bearings in the tower-post A.

O designates a beveled gear-wheel secured to one end of the axle O,which engages with a beveled gear-wheel B, secured to the shaft B. Tothe other end of the axle O a crank arm or wheel C is secured, and tothis crankwheel a wrist-pin O is secured, to which a jointedconnecting-rod C is pivoted, which is held in line vertically by theguides 0 and to the lower end of this connecting-rod C the mechanism forpumping, grinding grain, or any other purpose is connected.

D-designatesa hub consisting of the plates (Z d and the collar (Z thelatter secured to or formed with the lower one of said plates d, andsaid collar 0?, by means of a set-screw d or by any means or in anymanner, is rigidly secured to the shaft 13.

E designates a standard socketed in or otherwise rigidly secured to andextending upward above the hub D, or this standard E may be an extensionof the shaft B, if found suitable or convenient.

F F designate a series of horizontal sailarms, the inner ends of whichare inserted between the plates d, and said arms and hubplates areclamped and bolted or otherwise rigidly secured together, thus rigidlysecuring the inner ends of the horizontal arms F to the hub D.

G Gdesignate stays,cables,or braces formed of wire or other suitablematerial,which connect the upper end of the standard E with the arms F Ffor the purpose of rigidly bracing and holding said standard in placeand.

said arms in a horizontal position.

G G designate stays, braces, or cables which extend across from onehorizontal arm to the other in order to further stiffen and rigidly holdin place said arms F F.

H H designate frames which are rigidly secured about midway betweentheir ends to the horizontal arms F F and near the outer ends of thelatter.

I I designate stays or braces formed of wire or other suitable material,which connect the outer ends of the side bars 71. of the frame H withthe horizontal arms F F for the purpose of further stiffening andstrengthening said frames H and to further rigidly secure said frames Hto said horizontal arms F.

J and K designate cross frame-wires which extend across between and aresecured to the side bars 72. h of the frame H, the wires J near theouter ends of the side bars 7t and the wires K about midway between theouter ends of the side bars h and the horizontal arms F F.

L L designate sails, two of which are shown on each horizontal arm F;but one or more may be used, according to the circumstances or powerrequired. In the case where one sail only is used on each horizontal armthe former may be pivoted on the latter, or the power of the millconstructed as shown in the accompanying drawings may be increased bymaking the frames H H larger or longer, or by providing additionalframes andlengthening the horizontal arms F F and supplying additionalsails above and below or at one or both sides of those shown in thedrawings, and said sails may be formed wholly of wood or other suitablematerial, or they may be formed of a frame of wire or other suitablematerial and covered with canvas or other suitable material.

In the case of small mills it is preferable to use a wire framework forthe sails, but other suitable material may be used.

When a wire framework for the sail is used,

it may consist of one or more wires extending one or more timespartially or wholly around the sail. If a single wire Z were used, itwould extend first wholly around the margin of the sail. It would thenbe doubled along one of the unsupported sides or ends and partially downon both of the pivotal sides or ends of the sail about equal distanceson each side of the loop Z as shown in Fig. 4. In the case'of a singlewire the loops Z would be formed in the Wire Z but in the case where twowires are used the loops Z would be preferably formed in the secondorsupplemental wire Z but loops may be formed in either or both wires,as preferred. The cross framewire K also serves as a pivot on which thesail L is pivoted, and this wire K extends through the loops Z and theends of said wire may extend through and be looped around or otherwisesecured to the side bars h h of the frames H to prevent the strain ofthe sail from drawing the wire K out of said side bars, or the ends ofthe pivotal wire K may extend through said side bars and either or bothends provided with a thu mb-screw to take up any slack or sagging ofsaid wire and to adjust said wire K longitudinally, if it should wearunevenly.

It will be noticed that the sail L is pivoted off the center or thatthere is a greater area Z of sail-surface on one side of the pivotalwire K than on the other side Z for the purpose which will behereinafter set forth.

As shown in Fig. 4, the wire Z is folded or doubled upon itself one ormore times on the end or side Z of the sail of the smallest'area. Theobject of this is to cause it to balance the end or side Z of the sailof largest area, or sup plemental weights may be secured to the cornersof the portion Z of the sail in order that the portions of the sail oflarge and small area may balance one another.

If wood sails are used, the narrow portion Z of the sail may be suppliedwith a metal edge strip Z to weight the narrow portion of the sail inorder to make it balance the wide portion Z of the sai1,and to stiffenand strengthen said wooden sail all of the sides may be provided withlight metal strips, if necessary.

In the case of large mills the sails may be formed wholly of wood orother suitable material or of a framework of wood covered with canvas,or the free side or end of the sail may be provided with a truss Z andpivotal braces Z as shown in Fig. 5, for the purpose of holding the sailflat and to prevent it from warping. By forming the braces Z pivotalthey, as well as the truss Z may be adjusted out of the way and heldagainst the frame of the sail when desired. Again, in the case oflargesails the pivoted sides or ends may be provided with supplemental stripsZ which may extend on each side of the pivotal support of said sail forthe purpose of stiifening and strengthening the latter.

Z designates a pocket or opening formed near the on ter edge of theportion Z of the sail IIO lVhen the wide portions Z and the narrow'portions Z of the sails are balanced and when the sails are free to beacted upon by the wind, the latter acts on the wider portions Z of thesails and automatically adjusts the outerends of these wide portionsagainst the outer frame-wires J, which act as stops to hold the sailsvertically, as shown in Fig. 2 and on the left-hand side of Fig. 1, andexposed to the full power of the wind, which rotates the horizontal armsF, hub D, and shaft B, secured thereto, and operates the pumping orother mechanism connected therewith. This is the result when the wideportions Z of the sails are between the stop-wires J and the wind, whichis the case during one-half of the revolution of the radial arms H; butas the radial arms H make the other half of the revolution thestop-wires J will be between the wind and the portion Z of the sails oflargest area, the result of which is that the wind acting on the wideportions Z of the sails automatically adjusts them in a horizontalposition, so that their edges will be presented to the wind, as shown inFig. 3 and on the right-hand side of Fig. 1, and consequently permit thefree passage of the wind. As a result they will not in any waycounteract or reduce the action of the wind on the vertical sails. Theresult is that during one half of the revolution the sails are exposedto and receive the full power and force of the wind, while during theother half the edge of the sail is presented to the wind to permit thefree passage of the latter, and the sails are automatically adjusted tothese different positions as they are carried around by the wind, sothat no attendance on the mill is necessary when in operation.

M M designate weights (shown particularly in Figs. 2 and 3) which aresecured by screws or in any manner or by any means to the outer ends ofthe horizontal arms F, the inertia of which weights will oppose anysudden acceleration of speed, and the momentum of which weights willprevent any sudden diminution of speed. As a result the speed of themill will be practically equalized. 1

N designates a lever pivoted on the upper end of the standard E, and toone end of this lever N a strand of wire or other suitable materialN issecured, and this wire N is provided with a ring or loop N, which mayencircle said standard or not, as preferred.

N N designate wires which connect the strand N of each arm directly withthe loop or ring N and the ends of the strands N are secured at theirends to the inner and outer ends of the arms F.

O O O O designate stay or brace wires secured to the side bars h of theframes H and to the supporting-bar P for the purpose of firmly holdingthe latter in a vertical position and in line with the center of thesails L and with an equal portion of said bars P above and below thehorizontal arms F. The wires 0 and 0 also prevent the excessive movementof the sails beyond their horizontal po* sition on the side of the armF, adjacent to the bar P.

R R designate spring-catches, each of which is provided with the hook orshoulder R and with the inclined face R and each of said catches issecured to and supported by a supporting-bar P in such relation to thesailsL that when all the latter are properly adjusted in a horizontalposition the hooks or shoulders R of said catches R will engage with thepockets or openings Z of said sails, when desired, to hold the latter ina horizontal position to permit the free passage of the wind and to stopthe operation of the mill.

S S designate wires which connect the wire N with the spring-catches R.

T designates a wire, one end of which is secured to one end of the leverN. This wire T extends into and down through the hollow shaft B withinconvenient reach of a person on the ground, and in the case where theshaft B is formed solid the wire T extends through grooves formed insaidshaft B at the point or points where it extends through the brackets A.

W" designates a notched bar which is pivotally secured to thetower-post, the notches of which bar engage with the rungs of a ladder Wfor the purpose of holding the ladder in an upright position to enable aperson to readily and safely gain access to any part of the mill.

To stop the mill, all that is necessary to do is to draw down on thewire T. This adjusts the lever N, wire N, loop N wires N N and S untilthe catches R are adjusted to the position shown in Fig. 3, and theseparts may be held in this position by the loop T of the wire T bindingon the shaft B, or said wireT may be held as adjusted by engaging itslower end with a hook, boss, or projection on the shaft B, or in anymanner or by any means found most suitable or convenient. When thecatches R are adjusted as described, as the sails Lmove around to theright-hand side of the mill (shown in Fig. 1) the force of the windadjusts the sails L in a horizontal position, which causes them to movedown the inclined face R and snap under the shoulder R of the catches R,which shoulder R engages with the pocket or opening Z of the sail L tofirmly hold and lock the sail in this horizontal position. This drawingdownward on the wire T to adjust the catches R to the position shown inFig. 3 makes said catches R resilient, so that when wishing to start themill again all that is necessary to do is to release the lower end ofthe wire T, when the. resilience of the catches R will adjust them fromin contact with the sails L, and this action will adjust the wires S, Nand N loop N wire N, and lever N to the position shown in Fig. 2 andleave the sails to be freely acted upon by the wind, as hereinbeforedescribed, in order to operate the mill.

The construction herein shown and described I have found by experimentto give the best results. At the same time while I prefer the same I donot Wish to limit myself to the details thereof, as they may be modifiedin various ways without departing from the spirit of my invention.

Having thus described my invention, I claim- 1. The shaft, B, the hub,D, standard, E, lever,N,wire, T, horizontal arms, F, F,frames, H, andsails, L, pivoted off their center in combination With the catches, R,and bar, P, and means for supporting said bar, P, and for connecting thecatches, R, with the lever, N, substantially as and for the purpose setforth.

2. The shaft, B, the hub, D, standard, E, lever, N, Wire, T, horizontalarms, F, F, weights, M, frames, H, pivotal wires, K, stop- Wires, J, andsails, L, pivoted off their center in combination with the catches, R,and bar, P, and means for supporting said bar, P, and for connecting thecatches, R, with the lever, N, substantially as and for the purpose setforth.

3. The shaft, 13, the hub, D, standard, E, lever,N,wire,T,h0rizontalarms, F, F, frames, H, and sails, L, pivoted off their center incombination with the catches, R, and bar, P, stay or brace wires, 0, 0',O and, O and means for connecting the catches, R, with the lever, N,substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

4. The shaft, B, the hub, D, the standard,

E, lever, N, wire, T, horizontal arms, F, F,

frames, H, and sails, L, pivoted off their center in combination withthe catches, R, the wires, S, N N and, N, and ring, N the bar, P, andmeans for supporting the latter, substantially as and for the purposeset forth.

5. The shaft, 13, the hub, D, the standard, E, lever, N, wire, T,horizontal arms, F, F, frames, H, and sails, L, pivoted off their centerand in which the pocket or opening, 1 is formed in combination withcatches, R, provided with the shoulder, R, and the bar, P, and means forsupporting the latter and for connecting the catches, R, with the lever,N, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

6. The shaft, B, the hub, D, the standard, E, lever, N, wire, T,horizontal arms, F, F, frames, H, and sails, L, pivoted off their centerin combination with the catches, R, wires, S, S, N N and, N, and ring, Nthe bar, P, and the brace-wires, O, 0, O 0 substantially as and for thepurpose set forth.

7. The shaft, B, tower, A, bracket, A, bearing, A hub, D, standard, E,lever, N, wire, T, horizontal arms, F, F, frames, I-I, braces, G, G,and, I, and the sails, L, pivoted off their center, in combination withthe bar, P, and the brace-wires, O, O, 0 0 the catches, R, and theconnecting-wires, S, S, N N and, N, and ring, N substantially as and forthe purpose set forth.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name in the presence of the twoundersigned witnesses.

JAMES N. BRUCE.

